


This isn't a fairytale brat.

by tomcollins



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Foster Care, M/M, city
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2013-09-26
Updated: 2013-10-05
Packaged: 2017-12-27 16:07:30
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 3,782
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/980924
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tomcollins/pseuds/tomcollins
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Eren Jeager has been deemed a troubled child, going through foster families like underwear. He spends most of his time in the city, loitering in shops and following people. But one day someone catches his notice and eren is determined to figure him out.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. People watching

**Author's Note:**

  * For [OneOddKitteh](https://archiveofourown.org/users/OneOddKitteh/gifts).



> Ok, gonna handle a multichapter fic, it's not going to be too long... but anyway!

Eren was good at this, flittering between people, going unnoticed; he played this game almost every day. He had a home, but he was barely there, they didn’t want him. They say they love him but Eren knew otherwise. Foster parents barely ever love their foster children. He wasn’t the only kid there, there was a girl named Mikasa. She was kind, if not stern. Eren had taken a liking to Mikasa and Mikasa was overprotective of Eren. Honestly, at his age of 19 Eren thought he’d be past the care, but he couldn’t get a job if his life depended on it so the care it was. Regardless, Eren knew he was a street kid. He spent his time loitering in shops, pretending to look at the products and feeling the glares of the attendants as he walked out without buying anything. He did get pocket money from his carers, but Eren didn’t want to spend it. He also enjoyed following people, picking out somebody from the crowd, he didn’t discriminate, and trailing them, keeping out of sight. He almost never got caught. Eren was good at this. Eren stepped out from the bustling people and into a café. Eren inhaled, cafés were what Eren liked the most, the smell of coffee and the gentle chatter of those around him. He leaned against a wall were he knew the barista wouldn’t see him and tried to tune into the conversations happening. The couple at table four were discussing a friend who had been in an accident. Eren listened for a bit but lost interest; those weren’t the sort of things he liked listening too. Table 9 seated three girls but nothing they were saying was worth paying attention to, something about shoes. Eren folded his arms and tapped his foot, looking at the ground. Sometimes in cafés people had interesting conversations but not today. Eren sighed. That’s when he heard it, the sharp, deep noise cut through the air like an arrow, disturbing something in Eren’s brain and setting him on edge.  
“-What do you mean you don’t have that kind of tea?” The voice spat.  
Eren was curious and continued listing as the barista stuttered a response.  
“-and you dare call yourselves a café, what sort of café doesn’t have that sort of tea?” It questioned again, becoming louder.  
Eren could hear now the way how he emphasised the end of his words.  
“I-I’ll go check the back!” the barista said.  
Eren now wanted to see the face that matched the voice. He peered around the corner at the counter and saw him, standing with his back to the counter, grasping it with long fingers. The man was quite short, dressed in a plain black long sleeved top and white jeans. Despite the way he was dressed, he still emitted the air of class that one would expect from someone high up. The way he held himself was odd, like he could intimidate all those around him, except Eren of course. The bored look on his face was amplified by his narrow eyes and thin eyebrows. His dark hair fell loosely off his face in wispy bangs, and underneath was shaved. Eren smirked to himself and walked up to the counter and stood next to the man. He was definitely below average height, falling almost a full head under Eren’s lanky 19 year old build. He looked up from the corner of his eye but chose to ignore Eren’s presence. The barista came back and confirmed that he had found some of the man’s tea.  
“So you’re not completely useless?” The man said, turning around.  
The man’s words were cruel but Eren could hear the plastic fake to them, this man wasn’t completely heartless. The Barista muttered an apology and the man waved him off.  
“Just take a seat” He said.  
The man nodded and walked off. Eren watched him as he went then turned to the barista.  
“One large cappuccino, six sugars” Eren spoke.  
The Barista raised an eyebrow but Eren ignored him. He liked his coffee sweet.  
“Have here or to go?” He asked in a bored tone.  
Eren guessed he wasn’t taking any crap since the last guy. Eren looked back to see that the man had settled into a seat at the edge of the room.  
“Have here…” Eren smirked.  
The Barista nodded and Eren turned. He smiled to the ground, slipping a ten dollar note back to the barista before striding off towards the man. The man looked up. Eren Slid into the seat opposite him and the man narrowed his eyes.  
“Must you sit there?” He asked.  
Eren stood up and feigned innocence.  
“Oh sorry! Is this seat taken?” He asked.  
The man looked away and didn’t answer. Eren noted the scars on the man’s neck and wondered where he got them from. This man was intriguing. After a few minutes of silence and the occasional glare from the man across from him, Eren was brought his coffee and the man his tea.  
“What sort of tea is that? I heard you yelling about it” Eren asked.  
The man picked up his tea by the brim of the cup and took a sip before placing it down and looking off.  
“I wasn’t yelling” he stated.  
Eren drank some of his coffee and leant forward.  
“Were too!” He teased.  
The man scowled at him.  
“It’s jasmine” He sighed.  
“What?”  
“The tea, the tea is jasmine” He almost growled.  
Eren leant back in his seat. Jasmine? This guy was interesting …  
“I’m Eren by the way!” He said cheerfully.  
The man stared at him.  
“I still don’t get why you insist on sitting here brat.” The man spat in returned.  
Eren winced. Man this guy was cold!  
“Why so cruel?” Eren questioned.  
The man looked out the window.  
“Why so incessant?” He retorted.  
Eren laughed and the man glared.  
“Will you tell me your name?”  
“No.”  
The man took a large gulp of his tea and sat it on the table, standing up. Eren watched him as he tucked in his chair and walked off. Eren stared at his tea and waited to hear that bell chime of the door before making his move. Eren was interested, and when he was interested, he followed. He stood up from his seat and walked out the door, just as the man had, and onto the busy streets. Eren’s eyes scanned and he looked around. In a few seconds he spotted the man in the crowd and locked on. Using his people-dodging skills, Eren managed to fall about three people behind the man, and keep him in sight. The man walked for a while, up the streets. Eren followed, loving this wonderful game he was creating. That’s when he slipped, he had no idea what came over him, but he stumbled, crashing into a man beside him, who grabbed his shoulders and yelled at him to watch it. Eren looked to see if he could see the man, but he had gotten away. Eren awkwardly apologised. 

A few days later, Eren saw the man again. He was following a girl who had told a friend she was going to meet someone when he saw something out of the corner of his eye. It was that same half-shaved hair. Eren turned, abandoning his game, and followed him. It was Sunday so the streets weren’t as crowded, but Eren still kept hidden. He managed to keep up the pursuit for about an hour before someone stepped out in front of him, blocking his view. Eren swore under his breath, but managed to see the man again, Eren was good at this.


	2. catch me if you can!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A shorter chapter this time :S sorryi if it seems too rushed

Levi Knew the kid was following him. He knew he followed him out of the café the other day as well. Levi’s only question was why? He was so annoying. Now, the Eren kid was following him and had been for about an hour. The kid was interesting, he must say that, and quite determined. The other day in the café He was very interested in Levi… But why? Why did he care? Levi sighed and continued walking. How irritating. Right now he planned on confronting the kid, and he knew just how to do it.

Eren spotted the man turning a corner and rushed through the people so he wouldn’t lose him again. When he turned the corner Eren puffed and wheezed, looking for the guy.  
“Ey brat” A familiar voice called lazily.  
Eren looked up and saw the man leaning against his car. He almost blushed, had he been caught? He decided to play cool.  
“Oh hi! It’s the jasmine tea guy!” Eren laughed.  
The man rolled his eyes.  
“Haha that rhymed” Eren smiled, walking forward.  
The guy folded his arms.  
“Why have you been following me?” He asked  
Eren stopped. So he had been noticed?  
“You’re intriguing” Eren shrugged.  
The man raised a single thin eyebrow before turning and opening his car door.   
“Get in” He said simply, gesturing to the passenger side.  
Eren hesitated, he had been forever warned about ‘stranger danger’ but there was something about this man. Eren obediently climbed into the front seat of the man’s car. The man closed the door and walked around to the driver’s side, climbing in. He glared at Eren to put his seatbelt on and slung his own over his shoulder before beginning to drive. They drove in silence for a little while, Eren trying to figure out where they were going.  
“My name is Levi.” The man stated, breaking the quite.  
“Huh?” Eren replied.  
“My name is Levi, Don’t wear it out brat” Levi scowled.  
“Alright then Levi” Eren said, looking out the window.  
Levi continued to drive for another twenty minutes, driving well out of town and beyond. They got to a forest-like area, full of thick trees and he stopped.  
“Here.” He said, getting out.  
Eren stared for a moment and got out too. Levi glared and kicked at the dirt.

“-disgusting…” He muttered.  
“What? “ Eren began.  
Levi silenced him, staring into the trees.   
“You wanted to follow me right?”   
Eren looked to the sky which was clouding over.  
“Yeah?”  
Levi smirked to himself.  
“Then try to keep up” He said.  
With that, Levi took off, running into the forest. Eren stood in shock for a moment before he started running. Thunder rumbled ahead and rain began to pat down. Eren followed Levi into the forest, dodging branches and rocks. Eren wasn’t used to this sort of running, but it was obvious Levi was. Despite his height and build, Levi was fast, incredibly fast. Eren struggled to keep up, the raven-haired man often getting lost in the thickness of the trees. It didn’t help that the rain was now bucketing down, soaking Eren’s clothes and making them heavy, also obscuring his vision.  
Levi didn’t expect Eren to be able to keep up, he must admit, he was surprised. Levi was fast, and he knew it. His legs carried him through the woods with ease. Forests were Levi’s thing; He tried to stay away from the city, so many people with trash-littered streets and the exhaust from the cars. Cities were filthy, disgusting, vile, whatever word you want to use. Forests weren’t that clean either but it was a different sort of dirty. It’s not like you can help the dirt under your feet. This rain was a pain, it slowed him down. First it was a patter but it then advanced to a storm. The wind blew wild, making the trees ripple and distorting the sounds of Eren telling him to wait up. Levi kept running, had no destination, he just wanted to see if the kid could keep up. Lighting flashed, illuminating Levi’s face.   
Eren Panted, Man Levi could run fast! His stamina wasn’t wavering either. How was this possible? Eren was the fastest person he knew, well he didn’t know that many people but anyway. He was faster than Mikasa, and all the other kids he had been staying with. Levi was definitely not natural. Eren thought again about the scars on his neck, how had they gotten there? Was there more? Maybe Levi was a mob leader, working in the shadows, Eren though for a moment, that was very unlikely. Eren’s feet began to slip on the quickly dampening undergrowth. He was running out of breath. There was a defining crack of thunder and a flash of lightening.   
“LEVI!”  
Levi stopped. This call was not like Eren’s others. It was strangled and desperate, and most importantly it was loud. Levi could hear it clearly over the rain and thunder. Levi turned and peered through the rain. He couldn’t see the kid. He stepped forward, tracing his path.  
“Eren?” He questioned.  
“Levi!” A voice called back, this time more choked and quite.   
Levi followed the voice, attempting to see through the heavy rain. When he got to Eren he stopped in shock at the sight before him.  
“Eren!”


	3. house in the woods

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> longest chapter so far hehe

Levi stood before the scene, Eren trapped beneath a tree, his face grimacing with pain. He needed to act. Levi rushed forward and knelt down in the mud leaning toward Eren.  
“Eren are you ok?” He said, genuine concern flittering through his ever-cold tone.  
Eren looked up with one eye closed.  
“You’re here?”   
Levi scoffed.  
“Of course I am brat.” He said.  
Eren tried to move but winced in pain. Levi’s eyes travelled to where the tree had fallen. Eren was on his stomach and the trunk was lying across his legs. Levi Considered his options, He could leave the kid there… no. That wasn’t an option. Levi didn’t know why he should care but he had to get Eren out.   
“I’m going to move the log ok?” Levi half-shouted through the rain.  
Eren put his head down and Levi took that for a yes. He stood up, examining the tree that had fallen, it was big but Levi thought he could move it. He grabbed the end of it and picked it up, bringing it around and dropping it beside Eren. Eren felt the pressure clear from his legs and he wondered if it was all over. He didn’t dare look up. Levi stood over the 19 year old for a moment.   
“Get up then.” He said.  
Eren thought for a moment.  
“I can’t” He replied.   
Levi scowled.  
“What do you mean you can’t?”  
“I-“  
“If you’re able to move that stupid mouth of yours you should be able to stand”  
“Levi-“  
“now stop being a brat and get-“  
“I CAN’T MOVE MY LEGS YOU STUPID FUCK IF YOU WOULD STOP BEING AN ASSHOLE MAYBE YOU WOULD REALISE THAT!” Eren shouted.  
Levi was taken aback at the kids words. What cheek! But that wasn’t the problem at hand. Eren couldn’t move his legs? Levi contemplated for a moment, staring down the kid. He sighed and leant down, gently rolling Eren over. Eren winced and hissed in pain. Levi placed one arm under Eren’s back and his other under his legs, making Eren gasp and bite his lip to stop himself from crying. Levi lifted him up, holding him.  
“Let’s look for cover.” He said.   
Eren didn’t say anything in return, staring silently into the rain as Levi began to run again, through the trees, his steel grey eyes searching through the thick sheets. It took about twenty minutes but they came across a small clearing, situated in the middle was an old house. Well, perhaps house was an understatement. It was more like a mansion, but not quite as big, with three stories. It looked at least a hundred years old, with ivy winding up the widows and paint peeling. Levi stepped into the clearing with Eren in his arms, almost whimpering in pain. Levi looked up at the sky, it was still bucketing down. With a sigh he stepped toward house, walking up to the door. He hoisted Eren up into one of his arms, grunting a bit, before jiggling the door handle and pushing the door open. Inside the house was dark and musty, dust making Levi choke.   
“Disgusting” He muttered under his breath.   
He narrowed his eyes, trying to see through the dark. Lining the walls were several oil lamps. There was no evidence of there being any electricity. Levi walked through the foyer into what appeared to be a living room of sorts. In it was a large sofa, covered in dirt. Levi walked over to it and placed Eren down. He walked over to a nearby wall and leaned against it, crossing his arms and looking through the dark at the boy.   
“Are you ok?” He asked for the second time, looking away.  
Eren contemplated, propping himself up a bit.  
“Why can’t I move my legs?” He asked, turning to Levi.  
Levi’s face changed minutely, from his usual bored expression to one of confusion.   
“What? You still can’t?”  
Eren shook his head. Levi stopped leaning on the wall.  
“I’ll go find some matches” he said, walking out.  
Eren lay back down, trying with all his might to move his legs. He didn’t understand… Why couldn’t he? That wasn’t the only thing on his mind, Eren wondered why Levi wanted him to follow him… and why in the forest? Nothing about Levi made sense… but he supposed that’s why he followed. That’s something else that Eren didn’t get. Why was he so intrigued? Eren’s thoughts were interrupted by the strike of a match against a match board and a sudden light in the room. Levi walked around lighting each one in the room, adding an orange glow. He shook the match out, tucking it into his pocket, and walked over to Eren. He crouched down on the ground and gestured for Eren to roll his pant legs up. When the boy didn’t comprehend Levi rolled his eyes and wrenched them up himself, making Eren gasp in pain.   
“What are you?-“ Eren began.  
“Quiet.” Hissed Levi, cutting him off.   
Levi began to prod at Eren’s massively swollen legs, ignoring the youngers protests and near sobs.   
“Broken” Levi concluded.  
Eren’s eyes widened.  
“Broken?”   
“That’s what I said isn’t it brat?” Levi growled.  
Eren looked down at his legs. His legs were broken? It then hit him. He turned to Levi.  
“This is your fault.” He said.  
Levi raised an eyebrow.  
“My fault?”  
“You lead me into the forest! What were you even doing? What sort of person picks up a kid on the side of the road and takes him to a goddamn FOREST?” Eren questioned.  
Levi looked away. Yeah, he didn't really plan it either. But you never know how something is going to turn out, you can only ever guess and hope it turns that way.  
“It’s better to regret something you did than something you couldn't do” Levi said.  
Eren balled up his fist.  
“What in the name of God’s ass are you talking about? What sort of crack-ass kind of advice is that? Do you have anything of sense to say?” Eren screeched.   
Levi scowled. He stood up and crouched next to Eren’s head.  
“If I remember correctly you were the one who got in my car and followed me” He hissed.  
He grabbed Eren by the Hair and pulled him closer to his face, whispering harshly in his ear;  
“And don’t you dare insult any kind of high being again.”  
Levi released Eren and stood up, walking over to the wall and leaning on it once again. Eren looked at him in astonishment. Levi reached into his back pocket and pulled out a phone. He looked at Eren.  
“Parent’s names and numbers?” Levi asked.  
Eren looked away and his face grew slightly forlorn.  
“Got none” He said.  
“Caretakers?”  
“No”   
Levi’s façade began to waver slightly, a mix of concern and confusion peppering his expression.  
“Do you have anyone at all?”  
“No” Eren lied.  
He had Mikasa and the foster family but there was no way he was going back to them. Levi’s look of confusion grew.  
“Where do you live?”  
“The street” He lied again, keeping his gaze firm and his voice strong.  
Levi scoffed.  
“That would explain the stench” He said, slightly amused.  
Eren laughed, setting the mask for his lies. Levi seemed to believe it, though Eren couldn't tell much from Levi. Levi put his phone away and walked over to the curtained window. He peered out and huffed.  
“Well it looks as though it’s going to rain for a while.” He announced.  
Eren sighed and Levi turned. He walked over to the brown haired boy and placed an arm under his body. He placed another under his legs and lifted him gingerly.  
“What?” Eren began.  
“There’s a bedroom up stairs” Levi explained, beginning to carry Eren out of the room.  
He carried him into the foyer and up the large staircase. Eren laughed.  
“I feel like a princess” He said.  
Levi resisted the urge to drop him.   
“In the little mermaid Ariel’s tail split in two causing her excruciating pain” Levi said.  
Eren laughed nervously but stopped talking. When Levi got to the top of the stairs he walked along to a door on the right and kicked it open. He wasted no time in shifting Eren over his shoulder, holding him in one arm despite his protests, and walking over to a large linen closet. He opened it and pulled out two duvets and some pillows, tucking them under his free arm. He walked over beside the bed and threw them down onto the ground. He crouched down and let go of Eren, balancing him over his shoulder. He lay out one of the duvets on the ground, topping one end with one pillow and the other with two. He grabbed Eren; who was beginning to slip, and lay him down, his legs on top of the two pillows. He stood up and chucked the other duvet on top of Eren. Levi walked around to the other side and took of his tan jacket and soiled jeans, placing them down neatly. He climbed into the bed.   
“Why am I on the floor?” Eren asked.  
“There’s no way I’m sleeping on the floor”  
“It’s a double bed, I could sleep up-“  
“No” Levi snapped.  
Eren stopped.  
“Tomorrow I’ll go find my car and get some food, then we will clean” Levi stated.  
“How can I be sure you won’t leave me?” Eren asked.  
“I didn't leave you under the tree”  
Silence fell and Eren scooted down into the makeshift bed. Levi also made himself comfortable, although disliking the amount of dust and grime.  
“Aren't you going to kiss me goodnight?” Eren teased.  
“Sleep Eren.”


End file.
